Working in the NHS must sometimes feel like working for the United Nations. Whilst first impressions are that our own current team of overseas trainees are actually above average in terms of skill, knowledge, and communication, the General Medical Council are worried that some doctors from outside of the UK arrive here with “little or no preparation” for working in the NHS. Apparently one in three doctors registered in the UK received their medical training abroad. The GMC is responding to a number of complaints related to difficulties in adapting to UK culture and ethics including the need to explain treatments and respect confidentiality. As a result, the GMC is planning a basic induction program for new arrivals to help them understand how healthcare is practised here. According to the BBC this idea has been warmly welcomed by the British Medical Association and the Royal College of Surgeons, although not many eyebrows have been raised as to why the UK healthcare system remains so dependent upon doctors from elsewhere. more…

“Taking back the streets” has been a familiar call over recent days. The brief dominance of younger members of our society rampaging through the roads and alleyways across England recently has certainly caused a stir and much debate often using the analogy of a disease – thus far producing a great deal of heat but little light in terms of prevention and cure. The idea of “taking back the streets” is actually not that new. It has been used many times before, predominantly as a method of forcing authorities to account for actions and sometimes atrocities that were perceived to be hidden by their Governments and rulers and as a way of promoting human rights. As such the ability to take to the streets remains a potentially powerful tool in societies whether democratic or not. more…

It has been a strange few weeks for insulin. This year is the 90th anniversary of its discovery and in everyday clinical practice, insulin still remains “a force of magical activity” as described in a letter to the Times shortly after it was first used in humans. Nowadays, despite a bewildering array of therapies for diabetes in general, the immediate consequences of starting insulin in new onset type 1 diabetes still remains a medical marvel. However, over the past few weeks, insulin has received a rather negative press. more…

The latest world record for the most number of tweets being sent on a single topic is now held by the Women’s World Cup football final earlier in July this year. Apparently this particular match generated 7196 tweets per second (TPS) with even Barack Obama joining in. Other recent notable world events on Twitter include the announcement of the death of Osama Bin Laden at more than 5000 TPS and the recent Royal Wedding with 3966 TPS.  more…

Working in supermarkets over the summer holidays can be an education for many an aspiring medical student as, to quote Henry James (and the News of the World newspaper), “all human life is there.” In the supermarket aisles the best and worst aspects of humanity are often laid bare while the checkout assistant struggles to be helpful and efficient at all times. Supermarket bosses perceive the tills to be the epicentre of customer service – every shopper has a choice and the store needs to encourage return visits. more…

The NHS and technology have had a quixotic sort of relationship recently. A current source of collective angst for the NHS is what to do about social networking? The behemoth of this new genre in communication is Facebook. Facebook and its micro blogging counterpart, Twitter, have even been implicated as major contributors to the recent so-called “Arab Spring” in the Middle East. In the US, the American Medical Association appears to be quite keen stating that “participating in social networking can support physicians’ personal expression, foster collegiality, and camaraderie within the profession,” as well as providing an “opportunity to widely disseminate public health messages and other health communications.”  In contrast, in the UK, most hospitals have a total ban on using Facebook at work. more…

The world did not end last month after all. Harold Camping, the founder of the Family Radio Network purchased space on 1,200 billboards across the United States proclaiming doomsday for May 21st. This is the third time he has been caught offside in his predictions for the end of the world. However, around that time an unpronounceable Icelandic volcano once again threatened to play havoc with major European airline timetables. Also in the past two weeks the American Mid-west has been reeling from the devastation of severe tornadoes and other freak weather. more…

In the UK, we usually do it in groups – that is teaching patients with diabetes and other chronic disease how to self manage their condition. For example, a group approach is now used commonly for teaching patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes, for those moving from oral hypoglycemic agents to insulin or when individuals need to start insulin pump therapy. One of the attractions of group teaching is that it is more cost effective for healthcare providers compared to a one on one approach.  more…

We recently had another visit from Barack Obama to the San Francisco Bay area. However, rather than sampling the delights of the city, the President drove south down route 101 to Palo Alto and the headquarters of Facebook.  The President was the guest of honor at a “town hall event” moderated by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. A Facebook “town hall event,” in reality, meant streaming video over Facebook Live and White House websites simultaneously with a potential audience of more than 500 million people. The idea of Facebook Live is to let users ask questions directly to guests. In the past similar events have included Tony Blair, and ex-US President George W Bush. more…

The NHS is in love with the airline industry. The idea of checklists before operations has really caught on, and increasingly ex-airline people are being placed in advisory roles for a variety of NHS organizations. Hospitals are especially envious of the ability of the airlines to develop and use technology that allows hundreds of random individuals to be safely transferred over thousands of miles with the minimum of fuss and at relatively specific times. more…